Last call goes to Danes

Foul on UMBC with 0.1 left in double OT key in UAlbany win

Published 12:11 am, Thursday, January 9, 2014

UAlbany's Dj Evans brings the ball up court during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Dj Evans brings the ball up court during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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UAlbany's Levan Shengelia passes the ball during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Levan Shengelia passes the ball during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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UAlbany's Peter Hooley goes to the basket during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Peter Hooley goes to the basket during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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UAlbany's Luke Devlin defends a shot by UMBC's Charles Taylor Jr. during their men's college basketball game at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Luke Devlin defends a shot by UMBC's Charles Taylor Jr. during their men's college basketball game at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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UAlbany's Dave Wiegmann goes to the basket during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Dave Wiegmann goes to the basket during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

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UAlbany's Sam Rowley goes in for a layup during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

UAlbany's Sam Rowley goes in for a layup during their men's college basketball game against UMBC at the SEFCU Arena on Wednesday Jan. 8, 2014 in Albany, N.Y. (Michael P. Farrell/Times Union)

Photo: Michael P. Farrell

Last call goes to Danes

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Albany

The long night came down to one final call at SEFCU Arena. Only one team was going to agree with it, and, on Wednesday night, it was the University at Albany basketball team that had no beef with how the referees saw the final second of their game with UMBC.

A key foul call against UMBC helped the Great Danes eke out a 73-72 double overtime win over the Retrievers in front of 2,145.

With 0.1 seconds left and the score tied at 72-72, UAlbany's 6-foot-10 center John Puk grabbed a rebound in the defensive end and then was pulled down to the floor by UMBC's Malik Garner. Or was he?

After the whistles blew, Garner was called for the personal and Puk was on his way to the line. And you knew there would be chatter about this one big play afterward.

Of course, there was glumness from the other side. Aki Thomas, the UMBC coach, had to digest his program's ninth consecutive loss to the Danes. It was one call he wished would have gone away.

"It's the holiday season," Thomas said. "This one hurts. We don't prepare as coaches to lose games, we prepare to win. We played 50 hard minutes of basketball and you hope that you could come out with a win you deserved. We played well enough to win and we didn't win."

Puk was making his first trip to the foul line Wednesday night and had made 16 of 20 so far this season. The referees adjusted the clock to 0.4 seconds left and Puk made the first free throw to make the score 73-72. He missed the second on purpose, then was called for a lane violation.

UMBC did not get a shot off after a long throw downcourt went nowhere.

This was the first double overtime game for the Danes (2-0 in America East, 8-7 overall) since dropping an 84-82 decision Nov. 26, 2010, at Detroit. UMBC is now 0-2 in the league and 4-1 overall. The Retrievers are 2-2 in overtime games this year and 0-10 on the road.

The Danes were led by sophomore guard Peter Hooley, who had a career-high 27 points, including a 3-pointer with 21 seconds left in regulation that sent the game to overtime. Sam Rowley added 20 points and 12 rebounds, his fifth double-double of the season.

Puk finished with five points, but also had a career-high five blocked shots.

The Danes were talking afterward of how they may not have prepared the right way for UMBC, a team they figured to beat. They say it showed in their play. The lackadasical turnover-prone (20) team got Brown so miffed at one point that he put reserves in for all of them with 15:57 left in the second half with UMBC leading 35-32.

"(Brown's) messsage was clear," Hooley said. "We could either shut up and move forward or sit there and sulk about it."

The starters returned 1:52 later and began to do the right things in Brown's eyes. The game then came down to the one final call.

"That's a hard way to win or lose a game," Rowley said about the call. "It's a pretty horrendous way to lose, but it looked like (Puk) got hacked and went down."